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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: rule · prune · bore · chip · spell · drill · shower · kid

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. spell — magic
  3. shower — to wash
  4. spell — letters
  5. rule — government
  6. drill — army training
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. drill — the tool
  9. spell — a short time
  10. chip — to eat
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. bore — to drill
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. rule — a law
  16. kid — to tease
  17. kid — child
  18. drill — a practice
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. chip — for betting
  21. prune — to trim
  22. prune — to trim
  23. bore — to tire
  24. chip — in a computer

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com